Cuba re-authorises private sector, but with tighter controls

Cuba has re-authorised private businesses after a year-long freeze, but with tighter controls than before on a segment of the economy that now makes up 13 per cent of the Communist island's workforce.

The freeze had led to jitters among would-be entrepreneurs in Cuba's budding private sector, and yesterday's announcement brought some measure of relief.

The official daily Granma said the new, stricter measures were necessary because of numerous breaches by private entrepreneurs, such as tax evasion, under-declaring the number of people they employed and failure to pay employer contributions.

The government suspended the issuing of business licenses in August 2017 for around 30 of the island's most profitable business activities, in particular the restaurant trade, in order to review regulations.

"We are not going to go backwards, nor slow down, nor allow prejudice against the non-state sector, but it is essential that people respect the law, in order to consolidate the gains," said then-president Raul Castro, who was succeeded in April by Miguel Diaz-Canel.

As a result of the new restrictions, the number of trade categories to be authorised will be reduced from 201 to 123.

"No activity has been eliminated but they have been regrouped," the deputy minister for labour, Marta Feito, was quoted as saying by Granma.

On the other hand, some new categories of private entrepreneur have been introduced, including "confectionary baker" and "renter of transportation."
"There are jobs that by their very nature cannot be performed at the same time," said Freito, the deputy minister. "How can someone at the same time take on the role of restaurant worker, manicurist and car-washer?"